BLOOMFIELD -- Don Lafferty quietly entered a plea of not guilty Wednesday at the Stoddard County Justice Center.
Appearing with his attorney, Don Moore, Lafferty waived his right to a arraignment and pleaded "not guilty" and was scheduled to appear again August 20 for case review.
Likewise, Christopher Hicks, of Dexter, also entered a plea of not guilty after having waived his right to arraignment.
Both men are charged with arson, attempted murder, first degree arson and armed criminal action following a January 2013 fire at the rural Bloomfield home of Lafferty and his now former wife, Mildred (Lafferty) Sandage. Don Lafferty is also facing the Class A felony of financial exploitation of the elderly.
The charges allege that both men -- along with Brandi Hicks (Christopher Hicks' wife) agreed to carry out a plan to set fire to the Lafferty home while Mildred Lafferty slept, with the Hicks couple igniting the fire for the purpose of being paid a sum of $15,000 -- to be increased another $5,000 should Mildred Lafferty perish in the fire.
When they last appeared in court for their preliminary hearings, a full courtroom heard testimony along with 18 exhibits presented by Stoddard County Prosecuting Attorney Russell Oliver. It was determined there was enough evidence presented to be bound over to Division I Court.
Allen McCoy, who is charged with murder of 67-year-old Aubrey Lee Finch at Bernie, was also scheduled to appear; but was unable to as his legal counsel was not available.
In February 2013, McCoy was declared to be "mentally retarded" and, as a result, incompetent to stand trial. He was examined by mental health professionals for both the prosecution and defense before the official determination was made.
However, a motion in February revealed that the staff at Fulton State Hospital, where he had been housed, "found that Mr. McCoy's unfitness to proceed no longer endures."
McCoy, along with Lafferty and Hicks, is scheduled to appear on August 20 at the Stoddard County Justice Center.